Landslide hazards triggered by the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, Sichuan, China |
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| Authors: | Yueping Yin Fawu Wang Ping Sun |
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| Institution: | (1) China Geological Survey, 45 Fuwai Dajie, Xicheng District, Beijing, 100037, China;(2) Research Centre on Landslides, Disaster Prevention Research Institute, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji Kyoto, 611-0011, Japan;(3) Institute of Geomechanics, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, No.11 Minzu Daxue Nanlu, Haidian District, Beijing, 100081, China |
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| Abstract: | The 2008 Wenchuan earthquake (M
s = 8.0; epicenter located at 31.0° N, 103.4° E), with a focal depth of 19.0 km was triggered by the reactivation of the Longmenshan
fault in Wenchuan County, Sichuan Province, China on 12 May 2008. This earthquake directly caused more than 15,000 geohazards
in the form of landslides, rockfalls, and debris flows which resulted in about 20,000 deaths. It also caused more than 10,000
potential geohazard sites, especially for rockfalls, reflecting the susceptibility of high and steep slopes in mountainous
areas affected by the earthquake. Landslide occurrence on mountain ridges and peaks indicated that seismic shaking was amplified
by mountainous topography. Thirty-three of the high-risk landslide lakes with landslide dam heights greater than 10 m were
classified into four levels: extremely high risk, high risk, medium risk, and low risk. The levels were created by comprehensively
analyzing the capacity of landslide lakes, the height of landslide dams, and the composition and structure of materials that
blocked rivers. In the epicenter area which was 300 km long and 10 km wide along the main seismic fault, there were lots of
landslides triggered by the earthquake, and these landslides have a common characteristic of a discontinuous but flat sliding
surface. The failure surfaces can be classified into the following three types based on their overall shape: concave, convex,
and terraced. Field evidences illustrated that the vertical component of ground shaking had a significant effect on both building
collapse and landslide generation. The ground motion records show that the vertical acceleration is greater than the horizontal,
and the acceleration must be larger than 1.0 g in some parts along the main seismic fault. Two landslides are discussed as
high speed and long runout cases. One is the Chengxi landslide in Beichuan County, and the other is the Donghekou landslide
in Qingchuan County. In each case, the runout process and its impact on people and property were analyzed. The Chengxi landslide
killed 1,600 people and destroyed numerous houses. The Donghekou landslide is a complex landslide–debris flow with a long
runout. The debris flow scoured the bank of the Qingjiang River for a length of 2,400 m and subsequently formed a landslide
dam. This landslide buried seven villages and killed more than 400 people. |
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| Keywords: | Wenchuan earthquake Landslide Landslide lake Rapid and long runout |
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